The 27-year-old oilfield employee who died in a workplace incident east of Estevan, Sask. is being remembered by his hockey teammates.
On Aug. 22, Dustin Pratt died at an oilfield site near Alameda, Sask. in southeast Saskatchewan.
The site is owned by Spartan Energy, which said Tuesday that the site is contracted and operated by Panther Drilling, and that it was a member of the drilling company who was killed in the incident.
READ MORE: Man dies at oilfield site in southern Saskatchewan
On Wednesday, the Bienfait Coalers, a team with the Big Six Hockey League tweeted out its condolences for Dustin Pratt.
Kyle Garagan, captain and player representative for the Coalers, said Pratt was a defenceman on the team. Pratt had been with the team on and off for around 10 years.
“It’s pretty tough to kind of put it into words but he was a pretty big leader on our team,” Garagan said.
“He’s got an infectious smile and he’s easy to talk to. He’s one of those guys that kind of makes everyone in the room happier. He brings out a lot of laughter in a lot of people.”
Garagan said the Coalers, which is made up of around 23 players, has been in shock since they received the news.
“Once we heard, there’s a few of us that got together, kind of just all hung out and talked about him and shared some stories,” Garagan said.
Pratt and Garagan are both from Estevan and knew each other since they were 14-years-old, Garagan said.
“He’s grown up playing hockey with everybody,” Garagan said.
The team has many great memories with Pratt.
“Some of the biggest ones: we won two league championships together after he came back after a few years off,” Garagan said.
“It was just nice to have him back around. He was a guy who was well liked by everybody on the team and he brought a lot of leadership to our team.”
Garagan said the community of Estevan is also reeling from the news.
“With Estevan being an oilfield community and something like this happens at work, it’s not only just friends and family it’s sending shock waves through, it’s through a lot of people that work in the industry,” Garagan said.
“It affects everybody when something like that happens.”
The Coalers have given one of Pratt’s jerseys to his family, which includes his mom, dad, two brothers and longtime girlfriend.
“Obviously, we’ll probably do something at the start of our hockey season in his memory,” Garagan said.
“He was number 77 so we’ll probably just take that jersey out. I imagine we’ll have something for the first home game. We’ll have a little tribute to him. We’ll probably get that jersey framed and have it hanging in the ring.”
The Office of the Chief Coroner is investigating the incident and has ordered an autopsy. The death is considered work-related and the coroner said there is no indication of foul play.
Pratt’s funeral will be held at St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Parish on Friday.
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